Owning a home is the cornerstone of the American Dream. But after one too many home repair emergencies—and the accompanying bills from professional contractors—that American Dream can begin to feel like the American Nightmare.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Home repair projects that seem downright frightening can be manageable—if you have the right tools. Unfortunately, walking into a hardware superstore can be almost as intimidating as tackling that first home repair project.
Fear not, brave do-it-yourselfer. We asked three tool and home repair experts what tools belong in every beginning handyman’s workshop.
Here’s their list, and how much you can expect to spend on each item.
Safety goggles, ear protection, respirator (dust mask)
$11-20 for all
"Any serious home-fixer should keep on hand ear protectors, safety goggles and a dust mask," says David Tenenbaum, author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Home Repair and Maintenance. Ear protection is especially important indoors, where echoes amplify noise, he says, and goggles protect your eyes from debris that flies when you’re nailing, hammering or sawing. "A dust mask is useful when sanding, sawing and sweeping," he says.
Tape Measure
$7-12
You can’t follow the handyman’s golden rule of "Measure twice, cut once" if you don’t own a tape measure. Tool expert David Tenenbaum says a tape measure is essential for almost any home repair and he recommends a good-quality flexible steel measure, 12-feet long by ¾-inch wide. "Half-inch is too flimsy," he says. A measure is invaluable for calculating square footage of a wall when determining how much paint to buy, or the area of a floor when installing carpet or laminate flooring.
Circular Saw
$40-60
Skip the handsaw and head straight for the circular saw, says tool expert David Tenenbaum. Circular saws, or Skilsaws, make fast work of cutting lumber, paneling and plywood. Most have a standard 7¼-inch diameter blade. When buying blades, Tenenbaum says you need only two: a carbide-tipped, 18-tooth blade, and a fine-toothed plywood blade. But be careful: circular saws are dangerous. "It requires ear and eye protection and good support for your work so the blade doesn’t kick back or bind," Tenenbaum says. "And so you don’t saw into your thigh."
Wood Chisel
$5-9
David Tenenbaum’s toolbag always contains either a half-inch or one-inch wood chisel. "You need it to chisel away a little wood to make a mortise (cutout) for door locks and hinges," says the author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Home Repair and Maintenance. "It is also useful to trim wood to fit countless repairs." When shopping for a chisel, consider purchasing a good—not great—brand. "I say ‘good’ because most people will wreck them as soon as they hit a nail," Tenenbaum says.
Locking Pliers
$8-12
"I couldn’t imagine living without a pair of locking pliers," tool expert Sandor Nagyszalanczy declares. Often sold under the brand name Vise Grips, locking pliers are an invaluable tool for removing nuts and bolts rounded off by improper tightening, or frozen by rust and corrosion. The recommended size is 10 inches in length; any larger and the tool becomes undesirably heavy. "Everybody should carry a pair of Vise Grips with them at all times," proclaims Nagyszalanczy. "It’s a very, very useful tool."
Adjustable Pliers
$15-25
Also called tongue-and-groove, arc-joint and Channellock pliers, adjustable pliers tackle the jobs a wrench cannot. "Pliers are useful when trying to grip round or oddly-shaped objects," says tool expert Sandor Nagyszalanczy. "With pliers, you are using the pressure of your hand to grip the object." They tend to be lighter than locking pliers, which makes them the preferred tool when working in tight spots—like under the kitchen sink, precisely where you will be after the sink clogs.
Level
$7-12
Hanging pictures without a level results in crooked pictures. The same holds true for shelving, medicine cabinets and curtain rods. A level will also confirm when items are plumb (that’s carpenter-speak for perpendicular). "I wouldn’t bother with anything larger than a 10-inch level," says tool expert Sandor Nagyszalanczy. "It’s a lot handier than a three-foot level. If the job requires something bigger, you can always put the level on a longer board to approximate a larger level."
Step Ladder
$80-100
Standing on a chair may work fine for changing a light bulb, but for more ambitious home improvement tasks you need a sturdy step ladder. When painting crown molding in a room, installing a ceiling fan, or even removing leaves from the garage gutters, a step ladder is worth its weight in wood. "I’d spend a little more money for an eight-foot ladder," says tool expert Steve Ettlinger, "because you rarely have to go to the top step or the next-to-the-top step as you would with a six-foot ladder, making them much safer."
Hammer
$15-20
The bigger the nail, the bigger the hammer. But Sandor Nagyszalanczy, author of The Homeowner's Ultimate Tool Guide, warns against buying too hefty a hammer. "A 20-ounce hammer equals tired arms," he says. "It’s a lot more weight to swing around, plus, if you miss you’re going to do a lot more damage to the wall—or your thumb." A 12-ounce hammer is ideal, he says. If you can’t find a 12-ounce, he says a 16-ouncer is the next best thing. Also, look for a hammer with a nice curved claw; you can use it to pull out nails, detach baseboard or as a pry bar.
Drill (corded or battery-driven)
$30-50
"The drill has always been the first power tool to buy," says tool expert David Tenenbaum. "It is used for putting holes in wood and metal, and for driving screws." Look for a 3/8-inch drill (sized by the maximum opening of the chuck), variable-speed, reversible tool, he advises. "When it comes to battery versus electric," he says, "they both have advantages. Batteries always seem to go dead when you need them most, but it’s nice to not have to mess around with an extension cord." Either way, he says to look for drills with a clutch, a feature that prevents overdriving screws and fasteners."The drill has always been the first power tool to buy," says tool expert David Tenenbaum. "It is used for putting holes in wood and metal, and for driving screws." Look for a 3/8-inch drill (sized by the maximum opening of the chuck), variable-speed, reversible tool, he advises. "When it comes to battery versus electric," he says, "they both have advantages. Batteries always seem to go dead when you need them most, but it’s nice to not have to mess around with an extension cord." Either way, he says to look for drills with a clutch, a feature that prevents overdriving screws and fasteners.
Saw Horses
$30-40
To properly use a circular saw, you need good support. "Sawhorses are the traditional support for sawing wood," says tool expert David Tenenbaum. He favors a pair of collapsible sawhorses, which are ideal for most jobs and fold up for easy, out-of-the-way storage. To prevent the saw blade from binding, arrange the sawhorses so that the cut-off piece of lumber can fall freely to the ground.
Retractable Utility Knife
$4-7
As the name implies, this little tool is especially useful. Tool expert David Tenenbaum uses his for everything from cutting drywall to freeing a painted-shut window. If you don’t have a pair of wire cutters, you can use a utility knife to strip insulation from electrical wires. The retractable blade translates into a safer tool—if you remember to retract the blade after use. Tenenbaum says to steer clear of knives that feature segmented blades you snap off when dull. "They are flimsy," he says. "And I can never get them to work."
Adjustable Wrench
$8-12
"Essential." That’s how tool expert Sandor Nagyszalanczy describes his adjustable wrench, a tool that fits snugly over the head of square and hexagonal nuts and bolts for tightening and loosening. Turn a screw on the neck of the wrench and you can adjust the tool’s opening to match the size of the job. "An adjustable wrench keeps you from having to buy a number of separate [non-adjustable] wrenches," Nagyszalanczy says. A 10-inch (overall tool length) model is useful for most home needs, which will likely include some light plumbing, general tightening, and assembling your new barbecue grill.
Screwdrivers
$6-15
Some jobs demand the measured restraint of a hand tool. "When you need to finesse a screw on a delicate job, there is no substitute for doing it by hand," says tool expert Sandor Nagyszalanczy. He is particularly fond of multi-function screwdrivers, often labeled 6-in-1s, which have a number of different tips stored in the handle for easy access. Equally serviceable is a set of five to seven screwdrivers. Either way, make certain to obtain both Phillips- and slotted-head screwdrivers, and a short-handled screwdriver for tight spots.
Caulking Gun
$7-13
Steve Ettlinger, author of The Hardware Cyclopedia, can’t say enough about the importance of caulk—and you can’t caulk without a caulking gun. "A good bead of caulk dresses everything up in the house so beautifully," he says. Caulk is a flexible material that seals the gap where different materials come together. Inside, it’s used for sealing around windows and doors, and where the bathtub meets the floor. Outside, caulk is useful for sealing foundation cracks and patching holes in the roof. Ettlinger says to spend a few extra bucks for a professional model that features a built-in cutter for opening the tube and a pin for puncturing the seal.
Some jobs are nearly impossible to accomplish without very specialized—and very expensive—tools. But once the job is complete, those tools become useless. That’s when tool rental yards become a weekend warrior’s best mate, supplying professional-grade equipment at a fraction of what it would cost to buy—not to mention store, maintain and repair.
Belt or Drum Sander
Who doesn’t love the look of gleaming hardwood floors? If you plan on refinishing yours, you need a professional drum sander. Using wide, rotating strips of sandpaper, the drum sander quickly removes the top layer of the floor, readying it for stain or varnish.
Reciprocating Saw
"This is a fairly expensive tool that is worth its weight in gold," says Steve Ettlinger. "But you may only need to use it for an hour or two when doing demolition or installing a skylight." In a reciprocating saw, a straight blade moves back and forth cutting easily through wood, metal, plastic and drywall. Make sure to get a job-appropriate blade.
Articulating Ladder
When painting the interior or exterior of your home, it’s extremely helpful (not to mention safer) to not have to run up and down a ladder. Steve Ettlinger configures his articulating ladder into an upside-down U-shape, tops it with wooden boards and uses it as a sturdy work platform, like scaffolding. Arranged in an inverted L-shape, the ladder can rest above the eave for cleaning out gutters, while not smashing the gutters you’re attempting to clean.
Tile-Cutting Saw
Installing ceramic tile is a manageable home improvement project if you have a tile-cutting saw. The saw’s diamond-tipped blade slices through thick tile like a Ginsu knife through tin, while the water in the reservoir cools the blade and reduces dust. There are hand tools that work for small jobs and thin tile, but if you want to get the job done quickly, rent the real deal.
Cement Mixer
You can roll out your trusty wheelbarrow to mix up a batch of cement, but then you’re left with sore arms and a dirty wheelbarrow. A portable cement mixer uses electric or gas power to rotate a drum and mix the cement, making installing a new walkway, patching the front steps or tuck pointing brick a fairly straightforward task.
Pneumatic Nailer and Air Compressor
Steve Ettlinger admits few tools are as dangerous as a pneumatic nail gun, but it makes fast work of reshingling a roof or installing a wood deck. Powered by an air compressor, the nail gun drives nails quickly and powerfully into the work surface, reducing the overall length of the job by three or four times.
